Celebrating the Violent Femmes 40th Anniversary with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
MILWAUKEE; October 2, 2023 – Milwaukee PBS and the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra announce they are partnering on bringing the music of the Violent Femmes to PBS viewers for a future broadcast.
On October 3rd at 7:30 pm, the Bradley Symphony Center will feature the Violent Femmes celebrating the 40th anniversary of their self-titled debut album with the band playing it cover to cover with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra in a one-night event. Ryan Tani will conduct the concert. Songs from the 1983 album include “Blister in the Sun”, “Kiss Off”, “Add It Up” and “Gone Daddy Gone.” This became the Violent Femmes biggest selling album and eventually certified platinum.
[inarticled]The Violent Femmes are an American folk punk band who began playing acoustic punk on the streets of Milwaukee. The band was discovered after busking outside The Pretenders concert. The Pretenders lead singer Chrissie Hynde asked them to open for that nights’ show. The Violent Femmes consists of founding members Gordon Gano and Brian Ritchie, joined by multi-instrumentalist Blaise Garza and drummer John Sparrow.
“We’re thrilled to be able to collaborate with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the Violent Femmes,” said Milwaukee PBS VP and General Manager Debbie Hamlett. “The Violent Femmes were the soundtrack for so many young people including myself. We’re looking forward to presenting this celebration of the 40th anniversary of some of the Violent Femmes’ greatest hits.”
The program will be distributed to PBS stations nationally. Two years ago, PBS broadcast nationwide the Milwaukee PBS production of the opening concert of the Milwaukee Symphony at the new Bradley Symphony Center.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.